🎯 The marketing trap that even smart businesses fall into
Plus: How to reach decision-makers, nurture valuable customers, and avoid AI 'sameness'
Would you spend 60% of your marketing budget on brand-building instead of direct sales? One founder says that’s the key to long-term success.
This week, we’re digging into long-term vs. short-term marketing, the real secret to customer loyalty, and the overlooked skill that helps founders navigate high-stakes environments.
Today’s agenda:
🤫 The LinkedIn secret most people are overlooking
🎯 The two types of customers you must target
💎 Your business’s most important asset
💼 Briefly: Viral videos, navigating negative feedback, and AI fears
⏱️ Up & coming: What’s required in a high-stakes startup environment
🤝 LinkedIn: Home of the decision-makers
On LinkedIn, your audience is listening—even if they’re silent.
Research shows that only 1% of LinkedIn users are creating content, which presents a massive opportunity for businesses to grab the attention of the “silent community.”
The difference between the silent community on LinkedIn vs. other platforms? LinkedIn has the most valuable audience—the decision-makers who can buy from you, hire you, or invest in you.
▶️ Watch my latest video for tips on leveraging the 1% rule and the silent community:
💪 Strategies for LinkedIn success:
Post consistently—and don’t get discouraged by lack of engagement
Speak to your audience
Make it easy to start a conversation (encourage DMs!)
Offer lead magnets
💡 Subscribe to my YouTube channel for more insights that have helped me achieve wealth while maintaining a strong work-life balance!
📈 Long-term value vs. sales volume
Valued customers and volume customers play different roles to your business:
Valued: Contribute to brand’s success through loyalty, advocacy, and deeper engagement
Volume: Contribute through more frequent purchases but with lower profit margins
While it may seem like one type of customer could be more beneficial than the other, founder and CEO Annette Franz says that both matter—and it’s important for your growth to understand the difference.
🪴 Tips for nurturing valued customers
Personalized offers and messages
VIP/loyalty programs
Requesting feedback & acting on input
Advanced customer support
Public acknowledgement
📈 Strategies for volume customers
Leveraging automation to improve support
Intuitive self-service platforms
Targeted discounts and communication to encourage repeat transactions
Determine who may eventually move up to a valued customer
💡 Many businesses require both to be successful—but ultimately, prioritization depends on your business goals and customer base.
🧺 Don’t put all your eggs in the short-term basket
Preston Rutherford, co-founder of the men’s clothing company Chubbies, told HubSpot that he thinks only 40% of our marketing dollars should be spent on short-term ads.
The other 60%? Brand building.
Rutherford says his No. 1 mistake with Chubbies was getting hooked on short-term performance marketing—and ROAS in particular. Prioritizing short-term results is at the expense of long-term brand building.
🌶️ Hot takes from Rutherford
Brand is the most important asset a business can build
AI is creating a “sea of sameness” with content—and we need creativity to break out of it
Think of any campaign as how it would sound if you sent it to a loved one—this will keep our messages more human
“People are not idiots,” Rutherford says. Our marketing needs to present as people talking to people.
Briefly
📹 “Going viral” with video isn’t exactly what you think. Read this 6-step formula for creating stronger content that leaves a lasting impact on viewers—and reaches beyond your immediate audience.
🤳 AI’s role in social media goes far beyond content creation: See these 7 examples of how brands are using AI to improve their marketing, from identifying trends to improving workflows.
⛔ OpenAI is no longer requiring users to login or create an account to use ChatGPT Search. The move makes AI search more accessible to those who may have otherwise chosen Google or another search engine.
🫢 Suffering from some less-than-positive reviews about your business on search engine results pages (SERPs)? Read an SEO’s advice for approaching this feedback, including eating “some form” of humble pie, and digging into the root of the comments.
🤖 Are Americans still nervous about AI? Well, one-third believe that it could cause the end of the human race on Earth. Check out the new YouGov survey, which digs into feelings on potential job loss, AI advances, and the technology’s overall impact on society.
Up & Coming
Startup environments don’t require the same type of courage or bravery as, say, a firefighter running into a burning building, but they do require something called psychological courage.
This type of courage is the inner strength we need to face “deep-seated fears, emotional pain, uncertainty, or self-doubt” while pursuing our dreams.
Read Dr. Jena Booher’s take on practicing this type of courage, and building the skills necessary to succeed in a high-stakes startup environment.